Mixed Doubles, Revisited
by xfilesfanatic
Summary: A slightly alternate version of the beginning scene in Mixed Doubles. One-Shot. A small gift for Leighann415 and Kristen3. My sincerest apologies for missing your birthdays.


**Disclaimer:** Frasier is not mine!

**A/N:** This is a slightly altered scene from the beginning of the episode "Mixed Doubles." The part of this story where the scene starts to slightly differ begins after the dotted portion of this one-shot. I hope you enjoy!

Mixed Doubles, Revisited

Silence, for the most part, filled Frasier Crane's apartment while Martin reclined in his outlandish chair as he read a newspaper, trying do delve into the simple pleasure of reading in his effort to drown out the sound of his grown sons admiring a rare armchair from a telescope. He was hooked on the headline, the main story in the black-and-white print regarding a man who had been incarcerated after pulling off multiple scams in downtown Seattle. Apparently, he had gotten away with his crimes for years before police managed to catch him in the act. He continued to read, the story was enticing, and it appealed to his inner cop. That, along with the absent-minded motions of his fingers stroking the head of his Jack Russell terrier, who was quietly laying in the chair with him, was almost enough to drown out the conversation between his sons.

"_Don't be greedy, your turn was over forty seconds ago...Oh, mama!"_

Almost. He sighed in defeat, knowing he was going to have to listen to this until Frasier and Niles decided to call it a night from admiring a stupid chair in some other snobby person's apartment. "You know what you boys are doing is wrong, don't you?" he asked, never tearing his eyes away from the newspaper. He didn't even turn his head when his older son responded, "We're simply admiring a very rare Brancusi armchair, not a naked woman."

"That's what I'm talking about."

…...

The conversation was cut short when Daphne walked in through the door, finally home from a date with her boyfriend, Joe. Martin was the first to greet her, happy that her presence would divert everyone from the awkward chair-gazing and the failed attempt at a quiet evening at home. Niles tore his eyes from the hole of the telescope and greeted her, too: "Hello Daphne. Good to see you're home." Frasier gave him a look; of course Niles was all too happy her date had come to an end for tonight. Niles silently responded by shrugging his shoulders and giving Frasier a questioning look: _what did I say wrong?_

"Aren't you home a little early?" the elder Crane asked. Daphne's breath caught in her throat for a brief second, "well, something sort of happened." She elaborated, specifically on the potato portion of her night with Joe, hoping she would bore them out of her story so as not to share the news that broke her heart: Joe dumped her. There, she said it, and immediately regretted it. She managed to keep her composure for all but a few seconds before the weight of admitting the truth to the Cranes, as well as to herself, broke the dam of her emotions.

"Oh God! Joe dumped me!" She wailed as the floodgates of her tears broke free from the corners of her eyes and streamed down her face. Her sudden emotions momentarily stunned the Crane men, leaving them scatter-brained and not knowing what to do.

"Somebody comfort her!" Martin insisted as Frasier jumped in to hug Daphne, blocking Niles before he got the chance to. Daphne continued to sob, her tears now falling onto Frasier's jacket as he stroked her back and tucked her chin on his shoulder. Frasier insisted that expressing her emotions was the healthy thing to do, even if it came at the cost of one's pride (and a new Italian silk jacket). When it became clear his words had no effect on Daphne, he gave up. "Okay, I'm not helping. One of you give it a try."

"Right!" Niles eagerly moved in toward Daphne, arms extended and aching to hold her, but his father got to her first. Niles frowned as he thought to himself. _How could Frasier have been so selfish as to worry about his new jacket when Daphne is hurting? She could cry over my new jacket any day. _

He had almost spaced out, lost in his momentary sorrow over not being given a chance to hold Daphne. She was a damsel in distress, and he wanted to be her knight in shining armor.

"Now Daphne, maybe it wasn't meant to be," he heard his father say. "You're a champagne and caviar sort of gal; Joe is more of a meat and potatoes guy."

Though he hoped no one would notice, Niles couldn't help but smile at Martin's words. For once, he agreed with something his father said. Daphne was most certainly a woman meant for champagne and caviar; in his eyes, she was meant for more than that. She was deserving of the finest of everything that life had to offer. Or better yet, she _was_ the finest thing life had offered. She did not need...

"Potatoes!" Daphne cry cut into his thoughts and stabbed his heart with the piercing effects of a sword. As happy as he was that Daphne was no longer with Joe, but it hurt him to see the love of his life so torn.

"Yeah, I'm messing up too," Martin said.

There! Now was his chance! "I've got it dad!" Niles walked up to her from behind and put his arms around her, and she turned around in his arms and hugged Niles while he soothed her with a strong but comforting embrace.

For a moment he pulled away to look at her; although her eyes were still glittering with tears and had become red and puffy from crying, she was still beautiful to Niles. Tenderly he cupped one side of her face and looked into the chocolaty depths of her eyes. "You'll be okay, Daphne, you'll get through this and move on with your life. And one day when you find yourself with the man who is meant for you, Joe will wonder why he ever let you go."

Despite the hurt that she was still feeling, she couldn't help but smile. "Oh Doctor Crane, thank you." She kissed him on the cheek and rested her head on his shoulder again.

Niles could stand here forever, holding Daphne until her tears subsided. He knew she would not begin to heal from this right away, but it might be good for her if she knew that she _was_ loved. That there was someone out there, or rather, right in front of her, who would cherish her and never let her go. He wanted to tell her. He wasn't sure when, but certainly it must be soon, before another man could come along and win Daphne's heart. But for right now all he wanted to do was hold her, and he hoped that he was being a good comfort to her. He wasn't always the best source of comfort, he knew; he wasn't even the sort of guy to cry at funerals. And in a situation like this, who was the best person to go to after the heartbreak of getting dumped?

_Ding-dong!_

"I'll get it!" Daphne announced, her voice still choked from crying. But Niles grabbed her shoulders firmly and led her to the couch. "No, no, Daphne. You're going through a rough time right now. Please, sit down; I'll answer the door."

"Thank you Doctor Crane."

Niles briefly rubbed her shoulder and then answered the door.

"Hi Niles." It was Roz. "I came to see Daphne. Is she here?"

"Ro-o-o-oz!" Daphne called from the couch.

Her friend looked at her and immediately knew what was wrong. She recognized that type of hurt all too well. "Oh my god, you got dumped!" She walked over and pulled Daphne in for a hug, then gave Frasier a glare. "Were you going to make her answer the door?"

"It's what she does!" Frasier responded, raising his hands in the air.

"Whatever Frasier." She averted to attention to Niles. Even though he could be as snobby as his brother much of the time, he did have his moments. "At least one of you is a gentleman around here."

"I'm sorry," Daphne sniffed. "I'm guess I'm still at the point where I can't hear his name without crying.

What Niles said next new he would hurt Daphne, but it was worth the chance to hold her again like he did not two minutes ago, a moment that came and went all too quickly.

"You hear that everyone? No one mentions the name 'Joe'". As he predicted, Daphne began to cry again and he leaned in to hug her. But this time Roz stood in his way, and led Daphne to her room. As the two women left, Frasier swatted Niles' arm, his way of saying, _I know what you were up to_.

The older Dr. Crane tried to turn his attention to drinks. "Brandy Niles?"

Usually, Niles would have accepted Frasier's offer. But this time he declined. His nerves were on edge and goosebumps were forming on his delicate skin. The overwhelming sensation of nervousness filled every part of him, and with it came an excitement that he did not want to dull. Tonight, he made what he felt would end up being the most important decision of his life.

"Frasier, I think I have just made an important decision...I'm going to tell Daphne how I feel about her."

THE END


End file.
